Firing back at claims the Jake Paul vs Hasim Rahman Jr. fight was scrapped due to poor ticket sales, sources close to Madison Square Garden have indicated quite the opposite, stating it was on track to be a massive event.
Soon after its abrupt cancellation just days out from the August 6 PPV, many began to theorize why Jake Paul’s contest with Hasim Rahman Jr. was ultimately scrapped.
While Paul’s camp claimed the issues stemmed from weight-cut clauses in the bout agreement, Rhaman Jr. has insisted he could make the agreed-upon weight.
This led to the likes of Dana White and Joe Rogan arguing it was a general lack of interest that led to the cancelation. “I’m hearing that they sold so few tickets it would be a real problem financially,” Rogan said on his JRE podcast.
However, new reports indicate these beliefs are far from true. In fact, sources close to Madison Square Garden have suggested Paul’s latest fight was on track to be a huge spectacle.
“Paul-Rahman Jr. was projected to be in the top 10 of the highest-grossing boxing events in past 15 years at MSG,” multiple sources reportedly informed venerable combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani.
As a result of such interest, early ticket sales for the PPV event were “strong,” according to these sources. That goes against claims of the opposite, the fight being called off “was not based on ticket sales,” they said.
Obviously, the narrative being put out there is different, but this is what MSG is saying. They also said they expected a strong fight week push and would be happy and willing to work with the MVP team again in the near future.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) August 4, 2022
While there’s no telling how close the event was to selling out the world’s most famous arena, cracking the top 10 boxing events of the past 15 years is no small feat. Moreover, with a “strong fight week push” expected in the final few days, revenue may have soared even higher.
Even with the opponent swap from Tommy Fury to Rahman Jr. and the subsequent cancellation of the event, sources suggest MSG is still “happy and willing” to work Paul and his team on future boxing cards.
So with ticket sales reportedly a non-factor, it remains to be seen just why Paul’s event was called off. Rahman Jr. has continued to argue weight wasn’t an issue, and even told Helwani he plans to weigh in tomorrow as proof.